World News This Week 2/4/16

Jamiesalvatore'17

Zika

We are all familiar with the scare of ebola, but have you heard about Zika? It is yet another mosquito-born virus that is beginning to spread rapidly through the Americas. It began in Brazil, mainly as a health concern for pregnant women, but outbreaks have recently popped up across the south of the U.S. Though its symptoms are mild, as of February 1, was declared a public health emergency. This virus is spread mainly through blood or sexual contact. However, Bedford is very far removed from these locations and we shouldn’t see to many outbreaks up north for quite some time. To learn more, visit http://www.cdc.gov/zika/2. 10,000 Missing Refugee ChildrenAs big of a topic as it was a few months ago, the crisis of the displaced refugees seems to have dropped in concern, when in fact it is only continuing to grow. Now, with the fact that over 10,000 refugee children have gone missing in Europe-and the fear that they could have ended up in the hands of human traffickers. Read more at http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/01/world/europe-missing-migrant-children/index.html3. Genetically Modified EmbryosThe United Kingdom has been given the green light to go ahead with research that involves genetically modifying human embryos. This will be for the sole purpose of research in understanding the initial stages of an embryo as it is still illegal for these embryos to be implanted into a woman. To read more visit http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/01/health/genetically-modified-embryos-dna-uk-scientists/index.html4. U.S. Airstrike Against ISISOn Monday, the U.S. launched an airstrike against an ISIS radio base in the Nangarhar province. This strike not only killed 29 militants, including 8 members of ISIS, but also destroyed their internet equipment which has since hindered their ability to broadcast ISIS propaganda. Read further details at http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/02/asia/isis-afghanistan-us-airstrikes/index.html5. Wasil AhmedWasil Ahmed was an 11 year old Afghan boy who commanded his own army for 43 days in order to break a siege against the Taliban. Yes, he led the men in gunning down the terrorist group-and they were successful. Unfortunately, this young hero was shot and killed earlier this week by those he had only just recently fought against. To read more about Wasil, visit http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/04/asia/afghanistan-boy-hero-taliban-killed/index.html